Warnock says Paterson will show he’s been worth the wait
CALLUM Paterson is closing in on a Cardiff City debut with Neil Warnock revealing the Scotland international will be in the Bluebirds squad to face Middlesbrough.
And the veteran manager is adamant he’ll soon show he’s been worth the wait after tipping the 23-year-old to become a prized asset in no time.
Paterson has not kicked a ball for Cardiff since arriving from Hearts on a Bosman in the summer with Warnock having to persuade the club’s transfer committee to splash out £300,000 in compensation for a player still recovering from serious knee injury.
He was left with cruciate ligament damage and major surgery after breaking down in an SPL game last Christmas, ruining chances of a potential January move as Cardiff battled with the likes of West Ham for the Scotland full-back’s services.
But Cardiff still went ahead with the deal and, after a series of outings for the club’s Under-23s, Paterson will be part of the senior squad for the first time as the Bluebirds jet to the North East.
Warnock – who is also optimistic Aron Gunnarsson will be available less than one week after being left on crutches with an ankle injury suffered against Birmingham – is unlikely to use Paterson just yet, but it’s a step closer to justifying the Yorkshireman’s faith in him.
And the Cardiff chief said: “He’ll travel and will be in the squad and it’s good for him because he’s going to be a cracking player.
“I’ve put some faith in him but what I said to the owner and the transfer committee was – because it’s difficult to sign a player who’s injured – that we have to look at the longer term because the £300,000 compensation was an investment.
“And although it didn’t help my squad in pre-season, I felt the club should take my advice because the lad could be worth a lot of money when he’s fit.
“I don’t see many better Scottish full-backs so I think he’ll be pushing for the Scotland team again.
“He’s still waiting to get back that explosiveness after the injury, he’s still not quite up to scratch going backwards and is a little bit sluggish when people are taking him on.
“But we’re working on his strength now and other than that his stamina is good.
“He’s a strong lads, he wants to win and score goals and do everything else.
“He’s frustrated at the minute – he kicks one or two in training because he’s not getting a game – but long term he’ll be a big favourite here.”
Warnock will wait on late fitness tests over Gunnarsson, who left the field after only 10 minutes of action as a substitute at St Andrew’s, though the Iceland captain has returned to training with club physios confident he can recover from a jarred ankle.
“He trained quite well and I spoke to him afterwards and he was positive,” said Warnock; Gunnarsson having been left on crutches on Sunday but rejoining the main group on Friday after a solo session the day before.
The 28-year-old will travel north (Cardiff once again flying to the North East) with Warnock prepared to leave it until matchday morning before making a selection call.
Gunnarsson aside, Warnock admits he would be tempted into changes for the game, but only if it helps him grab a result against Boro – a side he has an impressive individual record against – and not just because of the disappointing manner of defeat to Birmingham last time out.
“You look at the opposition and how they play and work out the best way to get a result, really. If it means changes, okay, but I won’t panic about changes for the sake of it,” he said.
“We didn’t know what a new manager was going to bring at Birmingham, with six changes and three who have never played before, it was difficult and we probably blame ourselves a bit – the staff I mean.
“But there are no excuses like that at Middlesbrough, we know they’re a good side, we’ve got be prepared better and be ready for that.
“We’re still classed as underdogs I think even though we are where we are in the league. It’s nice for us to go there with probably a bit less pressure, and I think we’re more ready for it.”
Warnock accepts Cardiff will have to be. Though he agreed with the suggestions it could well be an ideal
fixture for Cardiff to get their teeth into after defeat to Birmingham bit hard, the clash with one of the preseason promotion favourites will test the Bluebirds. Boro are without a win in four as former Swansea boss and captain Monk looks to really make his mark on Teesside,
“They will be a big test,” said the manager, knowing his side have not lost two on the bounce this term. “They will have a lot of the ball and have some good players.
“We know what a tough league it is. I enjoyed the Western Mail article on the money spent by others so it shows it’s a tough league when you see Middlesbrough spending £50m. They finished the last game with £40m worth of players in their forward line.
“They’re a good club, a good manager in Garry Monk who I used to have battles with him as a player and you always knew what you were going to get with him, which is 100%. It was a fabulous move for him to go up there and he has a good chairman in Steve Gibson who I know quite well
“But I think he said they will bash this league – but it’s a difficult league to smash no matter how much you spend.
“The Championship is not like any other. Money helps but it’s still difficult with regards getting it right. It’s still about building a team ethic and spirit and that’s why I have to praise the lads who’ve come in and fitted in the way we wanted.
“We might not have got the individuals others have got, because you do pay for that sort of quality, but we make up for it in other ways,” added Warnock.
“And you won’t get everything week-in, week-out, so it’s about how we react and this is a good test for us.”